Disinfecting many toys at once

[mlc1982]

I am not overly anal about disinfecting. I do the bedding once every couple weeks/monthly. I do the bigger toys with lysol wipes every couple weeks. And I throw smaller toys in the washing machine with a touch of bleach roughly every 6 months. My group has not had any bad illness go through here that they`ve all caught.

[mom-in-alberta]

I am so glad to see that I am not the only one... hahaha. I really tossed and turned, wondering if I needed to be more of a disinfecting freak, but I didn't really feel good about it.
If a kid mouths a toy (which I REALLY discourage and put a stop to fairly quickly), I will wipe it down and set it aside. But I don't do a daily spray-down. I clean toys on an "as needed" basis, really.

[Inspired by Reggio]

I agree - I think we have to seriously 'reflect' on where all this 'anal disinfecting' came from and if it is really doing more harm than good ... I agree that good HYGIENE is key .... washing our hands before eating and after being outside or in the washroom, washing fresh fruit/veggies/meat before being consumed and keeping a 'clean home' by taking off our shoes from outside and doing a wipe down of surfaces and so forth .... however I do not think we need CHEMICALS to do this ... after all we EVOLVED without all these chemicals and ironically without such high % of 'cancer' and other diseases that seem rampant despite our access to 'chemical cleaning solutions'?

[playfelt]

Now if we could just get parents on board who are still in the I have to sterilize everything stage for their baby when they come to interview us.

[lunademiel]

I am so glad to see that I am not the only one... hahaha. I really tossed and turned, wondering if I needed to be more of a disinfecting freak, but I didn't really feel good about it.
If a kid mouths a toy (which I REALLY discourage and put a stop to fairly quickly), I will wipe it down and set it aside. But I don't do a daily spray-down. I clean toys on an "as needed" basis, really.

I am wondering how old you LO's are? I have a 10 MO and 12 MO. Obviously at this age everything goes in their mouths. Should I begin discouraging this?

[playfelt]

I start by 12 months to discourage mouthing of toys. Basically once the first 4 teeth have come through the need to chew for teeth is less. Yes some kids have a real oral fixation and if you take the toys away they will resort to fingers. But you can limit them to a toy.

For me it is also about the other kids and the fact that if you chew on a toy long enogh the face disappears or there is too much wear and tear on the figure. Since the toys need to last for several years worth of kids it isn't fair for one child to destroy them. I have some infant toys and as long as a child spends most of their day chewing those are the only things they may play with. Gradually they get a few blocks,etc. that can stand up to the teeth.

I start by doing the switch - take away the toy they are mouthing but shouldn't and give them an infant toy or remove the toy and move the child over to where the bin of mouthable toys are - usually this one. After awhile they respond to "not in your mouth" said in a firm just loud enough to get point across that I am serious.

By 18 months it isn't an option. No toys at my house are allowed in the mouth.

Since I have been starting earlier to ban mouthing toys I have actually seen less biting take place and assuming they are getting the concept that nothing but food I serve goes in the mouth.

[mom-in-alberta]

Yup, we are the same. Around 12 months, ONLY FOOD GOES IN OUR MOUTHS. (OH, if I had a nickel for everytime I have had to say that, lol). I discourage hands and thumbs in the mouth too.
For one, it just grosses me out. Two, at that age, it's no longer a developmental stage, it's a habit. Three, for sanitary reasons I think it's not good in a multi-child environment.
Some kids will still do it, and some more than others, but it actually doesn't take that long for them to catch on!! They do have an issue with putting the playfood from the kitchen area in their mouths on occasion. We just teach an exaggerated and silly "pretend" eating, all loud and silly, and make Cookie Monster eating sounds. It's hilarious!!

[Inspired by Reggio]

I am the same way without mouthing things ... I GET that infants NEED to mouth stuff so I have teething toys and will redirect them to that 'bin' to choose something because regardless of your age you do not mouth anything else in my program - you get redirected back to 'teething toys' which are designed and intended for that purpose - if a child is particularly 'oral' I will place a teething toy right on their shirt with a short ribbon.

IMO while I empathize that infants are 'oral' and learn about their world through their sense it is never to young to teach children to respect their environment - there are things you can 'put in your mouth' and things you cannot and I do not want my materials full of 'teeth marks' or the paint chipped off of the wooden food and so forth

[lunademiel]

Good advice once again! Thank you all!

[Momof4]

Wow, I have definitely calmed down over the past few years regarding disinfecting toys and I'm glad to hear I'm not alone. My older kids are awesome and know that if one of the babies put a toy in their mouth they can just run it out to the kitchen and throw it in the sink. It makes me laugh and wonder every night when I do my dishes which one of my two little 3 year olds brought something out to the kitchen sink without me even noticing. I love these little monkeys!

I'm a germaphobe but I really believe that children have to contract viruses and build their immune systems so I'm better than I was when I started out in this business.